Alexander Zverev wants to clear the air with Boris Becker in Turin after a public dispute between the two German tennis figures, T-Online reported on Monday.
The world number one stated he would welcome a conversation with the tennis great at the ATP Finals, following his opening-round victory over Rafael Jódar on Sunday. Becker watched that match from the tribunes at the Inalpi Arena and is set to work as a commentator for Sky starting Thursday, according to T-Online.
The public friction between the pair began after a Spiegel interview in which Becker questioned why Zverev does not receive unreserved positive reception in Germany despite his success. Becker pointed to Zverev’s gold chains, his Russian roots, and occasional sharp, clipped interview styles, as reported by T-Online and Kurier.
Zverev fired back during the Erste Bank Open in Vienna in late October, indicating to reporters without naming Becker directly that only one person in his homeland continuously criticizes him. He later dismissed Becker’s remarks sharply, telling Bild that Becker “talks a relative amount of nonsense as always” and appears compelled to comment on everything he does, according to T-Online and Kurier.
Becker rejected the notion of any serious feud during his appearance on the podcast Becker Petković, which he co-hosts with Andrea Petković, as detailed by Kurier and Bunte.de. He insisted he remains Zverev’s biggest fan and that no genuine power struggle exists between them, noting that the media simply seized on the friction.
“Sometimes Sascha is too open in interviews, sometimes he should take more time, and in this case he didn’t do that, and then said that I always find a reason to bash him and talk a lot of nonsense,” Becker explained on the podcast, as reported by EXPRESS.
Petković expressed surprise at the uproar, stating on the podcast that she could not recall a single negative remark from Becker about Zverev over the course of the calendar year, adding that Becker frequently defended the player, according to EXPRESS and Bunte.de. Becker maintained that his commentary is simply part of his job as an analyst.
“He doesn’t always have to agree with me and we don’t have to be best friends, but we should both respect each other,” Becker said, as cited by EXPRESS and Bunte.de. He also suggested that Zverev’s management may have failed to properly brief the player on the full context of his remarks, comparing the situation to managing his own children who occasionally speak in the heat of the moment.
Addressing the prospect of running into Becker at the tournament venue, Becker told Sky on Sunday that any tension has long since dissipated, “Die Suppe ist gegessen,” meaning the matter is settled, as reported by n-tv.de.
“I don’t think we have a problem,” Becker told Sky on Sunday.
Zverev opened his ATP Finals campaign in Turin with a straight-sets victory, defeating Spain’s Rafael Jódar 6:4, 6:4 on Sunday. Prior to the tournament matches, Becker was honored on court alongside other former world number ones in tennis history before taking his seat in the stands next to former rival Stefan Edberg, according to T-Online.
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